F 


A  18 


BANCROFT 
LIBRARY 

4- 

THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 


STATEMENT 


OF  THE 


Capital,  $2,OOO,OOO. 


SAYLES  J.  BOWEN,  President. 

EDMUND  G.  ROSS,  Vice-President. 

THOMAS  T.  CRITTENDEN,  Secretary  and  Counsel. 

ALFRED  B.   MULLETT,  Treasurer. 

CHARLES  A.  FORSYTH,  Superintendent. 


TRUSTEES: 

SAYLES  -I.   BOWEX.  THOMAS  AXTISELL, 

ALPHEUS  S.  WILLIAMS,          ED.MCXD  G.  ROSS, 
CHARLES  H.   PAKSOXS,  THOS.  T.  CRITTENDEX, 

ALFRED  B.  MULLETT,  STEPHEN  K.  KANE, 

WILLIAM  THORPE. 


OFFICE  OF  THE  COMPANY: 

o.  32-Jr,  41  Street,  Washington. 


WASHINGTON  : 
H.  POLKINHORN  &  CO.,  PRINTERS. 


STATEMENT 


OF  THE 


Capital,  $2,OOO,OOO. 


SAYLES  J.  BOWEN,  President. 

EDMUND  G.  ROSS,  Vice-President. 

THOMAS  T.  CRITTENDEN,  Secretary  and  Counsel 

ALFRED  B.  MULLETT,  Treasurer. 

CHARLES  A.  FORSTTH,  Superintendent. 


TRUSTEES: 

SAYLES  J.  BOWEN,  THOMAS  ANTISELL, 

ALPliEUS  S.  WILLIAMS,         EDMUND  G.  ROSS, 
CHARLES  H.  PARSONS,          THOS.  T.  CRITTENDEN, 
ALFRED  B.  MULLETT,  STEPHEN  K.  KANE, 

WILLIAM  THORPE. 


OFFICE  OF  THE  COMPANY : 

No.  324,  4i-  Street,  Washington. 


WASHINGTON : 
H.  POLKINHORN  &  CO.,  PRINTERS. 


<rf  nf 

I41 


mqtmn  fflmmg  fl  ,ompnj>. 


The  American  Mining  Company  was  incorporated  un- 
der the  laws  of  Colorado  Territory,  February  24, 1870,  for 
the  purpose  of  mining  and  reducing  silver  ores. 

The  capital  stock  is  $2,000,000,  divided  into  shares  of 
$100  each.  The  entire  stock  of  this  Company  is  full  paid, 
and  by  the  laws  of  Colorado  free  from  all  assessment  in 
future. 

The  office  of  the  Company  is  at  No.  324  Four-and-a-half 
Street,  Washington,  D.  C. 

The  Company  has  -purchased,  and  holds  a  perfect  title, 
in  fee  simple,  to  ten  rich  and  extensive  silver  mines,  or 
lodes,  upon  Griffith  Mountain,  Georgetown,  Colorado. 
Upon  each  lode  one  or  more  shafts  have  been  sunk  to  a 
sufficient  depth  to  show  that  they  are  true  fissure  veins, 
and  extend  downwards  to  an  indefinite  depth;  and  that 
the  deeper  they  are  worked  the  richer  and  wider  they 
become. 

The  lodes  run  parallel  with  each  other,  at  various  dis- 
tances apart,  the  first  being  some  450  feet  from  a  branch 
of  Clear  Creek,  and  the  last  being  about  1000  feet  from 


the  crown  of  Griffith  Mountain.     The  following  is  a  list 
of  the  lodes  of  the  Company : 


LODE. 

Length. 
Feet. 

Width. 
Feet. 

Shaft. 
Feet. 

1400 

8 

30 

Bedford  

1400 

5 

25 

1400 

6 

25 

1400 

8 

35 

1400 

7 

20 

1400 

5 

15 

*0neida  

1400 

6 

25 

1400 

8 

15 

1400 

5 

20 

JEgean  

1400 

7 

15 

The  ores  heretofore  taken  from  these  mines  are  silver 
glance,  sulphuret  of  silver,  and  argentiferous  galena.  The 
country  rock  is  generally  a  coarse-grained  granite.  The 
ores  yield  generally  $200  to  $500  per  ton,  and  large 
quantities  have  been  taken  out  which  yield  $800  to  $1000 
per  ton. 

Griffith  Mountain  is  very  high  and  precipitous,  rising, 
within  a  distance  of  five  thousand  feet,  to  an  altitude  of 
four  thousand  feet  above  the  waters  of  the  Creek.  To 
work  these  mines  by  means  of  shafts  would,  therefore,  be 
an  expensive  process,  on  account  of  the  labor  required  to 
raise  the  ores  from  deep  shafts,  to  construct  and  keep  in 
operation  the  machinery  required  to  keep  the  mines  free 
from  water,  and  to  carry  the  ores  down  the  mountain  side. 
To  avoid  these  objections  the  Company  has  secured  a  large 
tract  of  land  at  the  base  of  the  mountain,  and  has  com- 
menced driving  two  mining  tunnels,  8  by  7  feet,  into  the 
mountain  so  as  to  strike  their  lodes  at  right  angles  on  a 
level  with  the  ground.  By  means  of  these  tunnels  very 
important  advantages  are  gained :  1st.  The  expense  of 
hoisting  is  saved ;  2d.  The  mines  become  self  draining,  and 
the  use  of  costly  pumping  engines  is  obviated ;  3d.  Trans- 


*Extension  of  the  Federal  Lode. 


portation  from  the  mines  to  the  mills  is  greatly  reduced;  4th. 
The  mines  are  worked  at  greater  depths,  where  the  ore  is 
much  richer,  and  the  lodes  wider,  than  nearer  the  surface ; 
5th.  New  lodes  are  discovered,  which  do  not  show  on  the 
surface,  thus  increasing  materially  the  value  of  the  Com- 
pany's property — experience  having  demonstrated  that  the 
country  is  full  of  ."blind  lodes,"  equal  in  extent  and  rich- 
ness to  the  best. 

This  Company,  in  opening  up  its  tunnels,  found  two 
"blind  lodes,"  covered  by  the  debris  which  had  worked 
down  the  mountain  side.  One  of  these  lodes  contains 
over  two  feet  of  mineral -bearing  quartz,  and  is  of  consid- 
erable value.  It  is  believed  that  many  more  such  lodes 
will  be  developed  as  the  tunnels  progress,  and  that  in  this 
way  the  Company's  property  will  eventually  be  doubled 
in  extent. 

The  property  of  the  American  Mining  Company  is  ad- 
vantageously situated,  being  on  the  banks  of  Clear  Creek, 
opposite  the  extensive  works  of  the  Stewart  Silver  Ke- 
ducing  Company,  within  the  city  limits  of  Georgetown, 
45  miles  from  Denver,  with  which  it  is  connected  by  a  first 
class  stage  road.  Denver  is  the  terminus  of  the  Kansas 
Pacific  Railroad,  now  nearly  completed.  Georgetown  is 
connected  by  telegraph  with  all  parts  of  the  country,  and 
is  as  accessible  as  were  the  coal  mines  of  Pennsylvania 
ten  years  ago.  It  is  a  growing  town,  and  daily  becom- 
ing more  important.  All  the  mines  are  in  a  flourish- 
ing condition,  and  those  of  two  years  old  and  over  are 
paying  considerable  dividends.  Mining  there  is  a  legiti- 
mate business,  steadily  pursued  without  fluctuation  or 
speculation. 

Adjoining  the  mines  of  the  American  Company,  on  the 
north,  are  two  of  the  richest  silver  mines  now  being 
worked  in  any  country.  They  are  the  Anglo-Saxon  and 
the^Federal.  The  following  statement  of  the  actual  work- 


6 

ings  of  the  latter  by  a  small  force  of  men  is  furnished  by 
GEORGE  H.  BARRETT,  Esq.,  of  Georgetown,  under  whose 
direction  the  work  was  carried  on : 

GEORGETOWN,  COL.,  Nov.,  1869. 
THE  FEDERAL  LODE  ACCOUNT,  CR. 

By  1711  Ibs.  ore  sold  (coin) $647  27 

1972     "         "  "     1,715  03 

7000     "         "  "      403  00 

2280     "         "  "     548  34 

3000     "     2d  class     "     15000 

42  Ibs.  ore  run  in  small  buttons 100  00 


Total  (coin) $3,563  64 

Add  25  per  cent,  premium  on  coin 840  91 

$4,404  55 

THE  FEDERAL  LODE  ACCOUNT,  DR. 

To  26  days'  work  in  August,  @  $4 $104  00 

63  "  September 25200 

61i          "  October 246  00 

Packing  ore  down  from  mine 90  00 

$692  00 


Net  profit $3,712  55 

In  the  foregoing  there  are  two  classes  of  ore — first  class, 
varying  in  value  from  about  $400  to  $1,500  per  ton ;  and 
second  class,  varying  from  $100  to  $400  per  ton.  The 
American  Company  owns  a  portion  of  the  Federal  Lode, 
and  will  reach  it  by  the  tunnel,  some  2,000  feet  from  its 
mouth.  The  Anglo-Saxon  Lode,  which  also  crosses  the 
American  property,  is  of  the  same  character  as  the  Fed- 
eral. The  Anderson  Lode,  belonging  to  this  Company, 
yields  ores  worth  $800  to  $1,000  per  ton.  In  fact,  all  the 
lodes  on  Griffith  Mountain  yield  ores  of  a  high  grade. 
Extensive  mining  operations  are  being  carried  on  all 
around  the  American  Company  with  great  success.  Some 
of  the  mines  are  now  worked  at  considerable  depth  by 
shafts,  and  all  experience  proves  the  greater  the  depth  the 
richer  the  ores. 

The  American  Mining  Company's  tunnels  will  run 
through  other  celebrated  lodes  which  have  been  worked 
on  adjoining  property  for  two  or  three  years,  and  have 
been  found  to  yield  ores  worth  about  $500  per  ton,  in 


large  quantities.  Among  these  may  be  named  the  Magnet, 
the  Comet,  the  Griffith,  the  Cram  Extension,  and  the 
Summit. 

Mining  by  tunnels  is  the  almost  universal  practice  at 
Georgetown  now.  The  following  is  a  list  of  the  principal 
mines  now  being  worked  there  successfully: 

Brown  Silver  Mining  Company  of  Philadelphia ;  George  H.  Christian, 
President. 

Terrible  Mining  Company  of  Georgetown,  Col.  ;  Crow  &  Clark,  pro- 
prietors. 

Baltimore  Mining  Company  of  Baltimore;  W.  Helmick,  (Washington,) 
President. 

Trenton  Mining  Company  of  Trenton,  N.  J. 

Morris  Mining  Company  of  Washington,  D.  C.;  James  A.  Magruder, 
President. 

Helmick  Silver  Mining  Company,  Washington ;  Flodoardo  Howard, 
President. 

Wilson  &  Cass  Mining  and  Smelting  Company,  New  York. 

Equator  Mining  Company  of  Chicago. 

Some  of  these  mines  are  paying  dividends  ranging  from 
15  to  100  per  cent,  per  annum,  and  the  balance  are  push- 
ing their  operations  with  a  view  of  doing  the  same  thing 
within  the  year. 

Some  idea  of  the  extent  and  value  of  the  mines  belong- 
ing to  the  American  Mining  Company  may  be  formed  by 
a  comparison  with  the  silver  mines  on  the  ComstockLode, 
heretofore  considered  the  richest  and  most  extensive  in  the 
United  States.  The  following  table  shows  the  extent  of  lode 
property  owned  by  some  of  the  principal  Companies,  the 
value  of  their  ores  per  ton,  and  the  total  amount  taken 
from  each  mine  up  to  the  year  1866 : 


MINE. 

Extent  in 
feet. 

Yield  per 
ton. 

Total  Yield. 

16  800 

$200  to  500 

Chollar  Potosi  

1  434 

23  to    25 

$4  000  000 

Ophir  

1  200 

27  to    45 

q  £;AA  nnn 

Gould  and  Curry  

921 

29 

i  9  790  Ann 

Yellow  Jacket.  

957 

27  to    35 

9  QAA  000 

Savage    

768 

43 

4   4Q1    AAA 

Crown  Point  

540 

33  to    44 

550  000 

400 

51 

170  000 

From  the  foregoing,  compiled  from  the  Report  of  the 
IT.  S.  Commissioner  on  Mining,  it  will  be  seen  that  the 
American  Company  holds  more  property  than  is  owned 
by  seven  of  the  principal  silver  mines  in  the  United  States 
combined,  and  that  the  ores  are  of  much  greater  value  per 
ton.  The  following  reports  of  Prof.  HAYDEN,  U.  S.  Geol- 
ogist, and  others,  sustain  the  foregoing  assertions : 

From  Prof.  F.  Y.  HAYDEN,  U.  8.  Geologist. 

DEPARTMENT  OF  THE  INTERIOR, 
Office  U.  S.  Geological  Survey,  Washington,  D.  C.,  Feb.  7,  1870. 

DEAR  SIR — In  reply  to  your  questioirl  would  say  that  I  am  somewhat 
familiar  with  the  lodes  on  Griffith  and  Saxon  Mountains,  and  believe  them 
to  be  very  rich.  The  Griffith  Lode  is  ranked  as  first  class,  and  has  been 
throughly  tested  with  success.  It  is  one  of  the  oldest  and  richest  in  Col- 
orado. The  ore  assays  on  an  average  about  150  ounces  per  ton,  and  some  of 
the  ore  assays  800  to  1,000  ounces  per  ton.  There  are  several  other  lodes  of 
equal  richness  on  this  mountain,  but  they  have  not  been  so  thoroughly 
wrought. 

The  Anglo-Saxon  Lode  for  a  year  or  two  produced  more  ore  than  any 
other  lode  in  the  district.  It  averages  from  $800  to  $500  per  ton.  The  Comet, 
Magnet,  Federal,  &c.,  are  excellent  lodes,  and  have  the  character  of  perma- 
nence. 

The  lodes  on  these  mountains  have  a  strike  about  NE.  and  SW.,  orE.  by 
W. ,  and  are  nearly  vertical;  consequently  if  the  mountain  is  tunneled  properly, 
the  tunnel  must  cut  all  the  lodes  in  the  mountain  at  right  angles.  The  Brown 
Mountain  is  solid  massive  granite,  and  is  tunneled  with  great  difficulty, while 
the  Leavenworth  seems  to  be  so  broken  up  by  jointage  that  it  is  tunneled 
with  comparative  ease.  I  think  the  Griffith  and  Saxon  Mountains,  if  I  re- 
member rightly,  can  be  tunneled  easily.  It  is  my  impression  that  these 
silver  mines  are  very  rich,  and  if  wrought  in  accordance  with  strict  business 
principles  will  yield  most  satisfactory  returns. 

Very  respectfully,  yours, 

F.  V.  HAYDEN. 

To  S.  J.  BOWEN,  Esq.,  Washington,  D.  C. 


From  the  Superintendent  of  the  U.  8.  Mint,  Denver. 

Hon.  S.  J.  BOWEN,  President  American  Mining  Co.,  Washington,  D.  C.: 

DEAR  SIR — Three  weeks  since  I  visited  Georgetown,  Col.,  and  inspected 
the  property  of  the  American  Company,  on  Griffith  Mountain.  It  bears  a 
high  reputation  for  rich  ores,  which  I  am  satisfied  it  deserves.  The  ores 
on  this  mountain  are  principally  sulphuret  of  silver,  (sternbergete,)  but 
many  of  them  are  zinc  blende,  galena,  iron  pyrites,  and  copper  pyrites.  In 
value,  the  first  class  ores  run  from  $600  to  $1,000  per  ton;  second  class, 
from  $100  to  $300,  and  the  average  value  about  $200.  I  have  assayed  a 


great  many  specimens  of  ores  from  this  mountain,  which  range  in  value  from 
$500  to  $15,000  per  ton. 

The  mountain  is  very  steep  and  abrupt,  and  consequently  the  true  method 
of  working  these  mines  is  by  tunneling.    By  this  means  the  mines  are  drained 
free  of  cost,  and  the  expense  of  working  them  is  greatly  reduced. 
I  am,  sir,  very  respectfully,  your  obedient  servant, 

F.  SCHIRMER. 
BALTIMORE,  March  15,  1870. 


From  the  Commissioner  of  the  U.  8.  General  Land  Office. 

DEPARTMENT  OF  THE  INTERIOR, 

General  Land  Office,  Washington,  D.  C.,  Feb.  25,  1870. 
WM.  THORPE,  Esq.,  Washington, D.  C.  : 

SIR — In  reply  to  your  inquiry  of  the  4th  instant,  with  regard  to  the  ores 
on  Saxon  and  Griffith  Mountains,  Georgetown,  Colorado,  it  affords  me 
pleasure  to  give  you  the  subjoined  particulars:  We  have  specimens  in  our 
collection  from  the  following  lodes : 

Anglo-Saxon. — Native  silver,  argentiferous  galena  and  stephanite.  The 
native  silver  predominates  over  all  other  metals. 

Griffith  Lode. — Gold-bearing  iron  pyrites.  Average  yield  $200  per 
ton.  This  is  one  of  the  richest  lodes  in  the  vicinity  of  Georgetown.  The 
shaft  opening  is  about  half-way  up  the  high  hill  situated  on  the  right  bank 
of  Clear  Creek.  The  wall  rock  consists  of  a  decomposed  mixture  of  gneiss 
and  quartz  porphyry.  The  dip  of  the  vein  is  nearly  vertical. 

From  Federal  Lodew  have  specimens  of  argentite,  or  silver  glance,  yield- 
«ing  eighty  per  cent,  of  silver  by  assay.  * 

Very  respectfully,  your  obedient  servant, 

JOS.  S.  WILSON,  Commissioner. 


From  the  Territorial  Delegates  in  Congress. 

FORTY-FIRST  CONGRESS  U.  S., 

House  of  Representatives,  Washington,  D.  C.,  Feb.  28,  1870. 
Hon.  S.  J.  BOWEN,  President  American  Mining  Co.: 

SIR — In  answer  to  your  inquiries  relative  to  the  property  of  the  above- 
named  Company,  on  Saxon  and  Griffith  Mountains,  near  Georgetown,  Col- 
orado ^Territory,  I  cheerfully  say  that,  although  I  am  not  personally  fami- 
liar with  the  numerous  ledges  owned  by  your  Company,  I  can  safely  say, 
that  after  a  residence  of  over  two  years  at  Georgetown,  actively  engaged 
in  mining,  that  I  consider  these  mountains  among,  if  not,  the  richest  in 
silver  ores  of  any  in  this  exceedingly  rich  district. 

A  tunnel  penetrating  these  mountains  can  not,  in  my  opinion,  fail  to  prove 
an  investment  that  must  richly  repay  the  projectors. 
Your  obedient  servant, 

S.  F.  NUCKOLLS, 

Delegate  from  Wyoming. 


10 

Having  resided  in  Colorado  for  the  last  ten  years,  and  being  well  ac- 
quanted  with  the  mines  in  the  vicinity  of  Georgetown,  I  cordially  endorse 
the  statements  made  in  the  foregoing  letter  of  Hon.  S.  F.  Nuckolls. 

A.  A.  BRADFORD, 

Delegate  for  Colorado 


From  the  Ex- Auditor  General  of  Colorado. 

BALTIMORE,  MD.,  Feb.  28,  1870. 

To  Hon.  SAYLES  J.  BOWEN,  President  American  Mining  Company: 

DEAR  SIR — In  answer  to  your  inquiries  relative  to  my  knowledge  of  the 
mines  belonging  to  your  Company,  near  Georgetown,  Colorado,  I  take 
pleasure  in  stating  that  about  three  months  since  I  had  occasion  to  exam- 
ine this  property,  consisting  of  three  tunnels  and  ten  silver  ledges  or 
Saxon  and  Griffith  Mountains. 

The  extreme  richness  of  the  ledges  on  this  mountain  is  a  fact  well  knowr 
to  all  Coloradians,  as  indeed  to  many  who  have  only  visited  the  Territory 
Notwithstanding  this,  with  a  residence  of  several  years  in  Colorado  amon£ 
her  gold  and  silver  mines,  I  must  confess  that  on  the  occasion  referred  to  J 
was  more  than  astonished  at  the  marvelously  rich  ores  that  were  shown  m« 
from  many  of  these  ledges — ores  that,  from  rude  tests,  I  found  yielding 
from  one  hundred  up  to  many  thousand  dollars  per  ton. 

One  large  piece  of  ore,  I  recollect  particularly,  contained  upwards  o 
$16,000  per  ton,  and  several  others  upwards  of  $1,000.  The  ores,  for  th< 
most  part,  are  sulphuret  and  silver  glance;  some  of  the  ledges,  however 
producing  argentiferous  galena  in  considerable  amounts. 

The  ledges  on  this  mountain  are  mostly  strong,  true  fissure  veins,  varying 
in  width  from  three  and  one-half  to  eight  and  ten  feet.  A  number  o 
ledges  were  then  being  worked  by  shafts  from  the  surface,  and  the  owners 
were  reaping  a  rich  return,  even  by  this  tedious  and  expensive  method. 

You  are  opening  your  mines  by  the  only  true  way — i.  e.,  tunneling.  B] 
so  doing  you  will  cut  most  of  the  ledges  at  a  great  depth,  and  the  certair 
success  of  your  extensive  enterprise  is  only  a  matter  of  a  few  months'  time 
and  a  sufficient  penetration  of  the  mountain. 

I  am,  respectfully,  yours, 

C.  R.  BISSELL. 


from  Rev.  W.  A.  Amsbary,  Pastor  M.  E.  Church,  George 
town,  Colorado. 

WASHINGTON,  D.  C.,  March  1,  1870. 
To  Hon.  S.  J.  BOWEN,  President  American  Mining  Company : 

DEAR  SIR — I  have  resided  in  close  proximity  to  the  silver  mines  belong 
ing  to  the  American  Company,  at  Georgetown,  Colorado,  for  the  past  thre 
years,  and  when  I  report  that  your  mines  are  exceedingly  rich  and  valuable 
and  capable  of  producing  hundreds  of  thousands  of  dollars  annually,  I  an 
only  stating  a  fact  well  known  to  every  silver  miner  in  Georgetown  who  i 
acquainted  with  them.  In  short,  I  can  say  that  you  are  engaged  in  a  grea 
enterprise,  and  one  that,  properly  managed,  must  result  in  great  pecuniar 
gain. 

WM.  A.  AMSBARY. 


11 

From  the  Central  City  Herald. 

The  peculiar  formation  of  the  mountains  around  Georgetown  suggests 
the  idea  of  tunneling  to  the  practical  miner.  They  are  generally  so  steep 
and  so  high  that  by  tunneling  to  strike  a  lode,  the  vein  is  struck  at  nearly 
as  great  a  depth  as  could  be  obtained  by  sinking  a  shaft  on  the  vein  to  the 
same  point. 

The  Great  American  Tunnel  is  designed  to  cut  Saxon  and  Griffith  Moun- 
tains. Beginning  at  a  point  a  little  below  the  mouth  of  Taylor  Gulch,  and 
just  opposite  the  Reduction  Works  of  the  Stewart  Silver  Reducing  Co.,  it 
will  be  driven  in  a  course  at  right  angles  to  the  general  direction  of  the 
lodes.  Some  of  the  most  valuable  mines  in  Griffith  district  are  situated  on 
those  two  mountains,  and  are  now  being  profitably  worked.  Among 
others  we  may  mention  the  Anglo-Saxon,  Magnet,  Federal,  Summit,  Com- 
et, and  Griffith.  The  owners  of  this  tunnel  own  a  number  of  good_  lodes 
on  those  mountains,  and  it  is  with  a  view  to  the  economical  working  of 
their  own  property  that  the  tunnel  is  projected.  From  our  own  personal 
knowledge  of  the  district,  we  believe  the  location  of  the  tunnel  to  be  a  good 
one,  and  if  the  project  is  carried  out  with  energy  it  cannot  but  prove  a 
great  success.  It  will  require  capital  and  energy  to  push  this  great  work 
to  completion,  however,  but  we  have  no  fears  but  what  it  will  be  done. 


From  Report  of  U.  8.  Geological  Survey  of  Colorado  and  New 
Mexico,  1869. 

THE  GOLD  AND  SILVER  LODES  OF  COLORADO. — The  gold  and  silver  lodes 
of  this  Territory,  so  far  as  they  are  observed,  are  entirely  composed  of  the 
gneissic  and  granite  rocks,  possibly  rocks  of  the  age  of  the  Laurentian 
series  of  Canada.  *  *  *  *  *  There  is  an  important  question  which 
suggests  itself  to  one  attempting  to  study  the  mines  of  Colorado,  and  that 
is  the  cause  of  the  wonderful  parallelism  of  the  lodes,  the  greater  portion 
ot  them  taking  one  general  direction  or  strike,  northeast  and  southwest. 
We  must  at  once  regard  the  course  as  deep-seated  and  general,  for  we  find 
that  most  of  the  veins  or  lodes  are  true  fissures,  and  do  not  diminish  in  rich- 
ness as  they  are  sunk  deeper  into  the  earth.  All  the  lodes  have  more  or 
less  clearly-defined  walls,  and  some  of  them  are  quite  remarkable  for  their 
smoothness  and  regularity.- 

•ft  *****  * 

I  would  simply  remark  that  my  observations  indicate  to  me  that  the  silver 
mines  of  Georgetown  are  very  rich  and  practically  inexhaustible,  and  that  under 
the  present  system  of  working  them  they  are  becoming  daily  more  and  more 
important.  The  amount  of  labor  that  is  continually  expended  in  opening 
mines  and  driving  tunnels  is  immense,  and  their  future  importance  as  a 
source  of  wealth  to  the  country  greatly  increased.  * 

There  are  some  remarkably  rich  lodes,  which  have  yielded  the  enterpris- 
ing miners  untold  wealth,  and  some  that  will  continue  to  do  so.  In  the 
majority  of  cases,  where  proper  management  and  economy  have  been  em- 
ployed, the  mines  have  been  a  great  source  of  wealth  to  the  miner.  It  is 
not  necessary  to  enter  into  the  causes  of  the  wonderful  failures  and  swind- 
ling operations  which  have  brought  Colorado  into  such  disrepute  in  the  past. 
It  is  sufficient  for  me  to  state  my  belief  that  the  mining  districts  of  Colorado 
will  yet  be  regarded  as  the  richest  the  world  has  ever  known. 

*  #  *  *  #  *  # 

THE  GRIFFITH  LODE.— This  lode,  like  the  Gregory,  near  Central  City,  is  the 
oldest  as  well  as  one  of  the  richest  in  the  vicinity  of  Georgetown.  It  is 


12 

situated  in  a  high  hill  or  mountain  on  the  right  bank  of  ClearjCreek.  The 
shaft  opening  is  about  half  way  up  this  hill.  The  shaft  is  one  hundred  and 
twenty-seven  feet  deep,  from  which  a  drift  has  been  struck  fifty  feet  east, 
and  ten  feet  west.  The  dip  of  the  vein  is  a  trifle  south,  though  it  is  nearly 
vertical.  The  crevice  averages  perhaps  four  to  five  feet,  and  its  north  wall- 
rock  is  a  syenite,  while  the  south  wall-rock  appears  to  be  a  weathered  gran- 
ite. Assays  show  values  of  from  one  hundred  to  seven  hundred  ounces 
per  ton.  The  ore  will  average  perhaps  one  hundred  and  fifty  ounces  per 
ton.  The  expectation  was,  when  the  improvements  in  progress  had  been 
made,  to  take  out  fifty  tons  of  ore  per  diem.  Some  little  trouble  was  ex- 
perienced from  water  in  the  early  spring,  but  not  enough  to  hamper  the 
efficient  working  of  the  mine. 

This  company  owns  twenty-five  feet  each  side  of  the  lode  and  three'.hun- 
dren  on  the  lode  each  side  of  the  discovery  shaft.  The  upper  part  of  the 
north  wall-rock  consists  of  a  decomposed,  yellowish  coarse-grained  mixture 
of  gneiss  and  quartz  prophyry,  but  below  it  is  a  hard,  compact  syenite.  I  The 
south  wall-rock  appears  to  be,  above,  a  reddish  ferruginous  weathered^gran- 
ite,  and,  below,  a  white,  compact  quartz  porphyry. 

From  Report  U.  8.  Commissioner  of  Mining,  1868. 

Silver  is  found  in  all  the  gold  mining  districts  of  Colorado,  associated 
with  the  ores  containing  gold,  in  the  galena  particularly,  which  is  tfound  at 
times  in  considerable  quantity.  Not  until  within  the  last  two  years  was  it 
generally  known  in  Colorado  that  immense  belts  of  silver  veins,  separate 
from  the  gold*,  existed  upon  the  western  declivities  of  the  Rocky  Mountain 
range,  corresponding  in  their  direction  and  general^features  with  those  of 
gold  upon  the  eastern  side.  The  prevailing  great  richness  in  silver  in  the 
ores  of  Griffith  and  Argentine  Districts,  in  Clear  Creek  County,  upon  the 
head  waters  of  South  Clear  Creek,  some  thirteen  miles  distant  from  the 
towns  of  Central  and  Black  Hawk,  and  correspondingly  near  to  the  snowy 
peaks  of  the  range,  first  attracted  particular  attention  to  the  element  of 
silver.  In  these  districts  silver  ores  of  great  richness  have  been  discovered, 
masses  being  exhibited  at  the  Paris  Exposition  from  the  Baker  Lode,  of 
Argentine  District,  and  of  the  Elijah  Hise  and  Endigo  Lodes,  of  Griffith 
District,  which  assay  respectively,  in  silver  alone,  $532.12,  §1,656.20,  and 
$1,804.83  to  the  ton  of  2,000  pounds  of  ore. 

From  thirty  assays  made  by  Fred.  Eckfeldt,  melter  and  refiner  at  the 
United  States  branch  mint  at  Denver,  an  average  assay  was  obtained  of 
$130.28  to  the  ton  of  2,000  pounds,  Eckfeldt  deposing  that  the  ores  so  as- 
sayed were  but  a  fair  average  of  the  mines  from  which  they  were  taken. 

Enough  has  been  done  in  Colorado  to  satisfy  any  one  of  the  true  value' 
of  the  countless  and  inexhaustible  veins  which  so  closely  pack  and  seam 
her  mountain  sides,  and  the  improvements  which  have  been  made  there  in 
so  short  a  time  must  appear  astonishing  to  any  one  who  will  examine  them. 

From  the  London  Mining  Journal,  October  22,  1869. 

The  first  ten  tons  of  silver  ore  shipped  to  England  by  the  Terrible  Mining 
Company  of  Georgetown,  Colorado,  U.  S.  A.,  has  been  received  at  the 
British  and  Colorado  Mining  Bureau,  London.  We  learn  that  the  assay 
value  of  the  ore  was  forty  per  cent,  of  lead  and  four  hundred  and  ninety- 
six  ounces  of  silver  to  the  ton,  which  is  expected  to  yield  a  profit,  after 
payment  of  all  expenses  (mining  included)  of  about  <£90  per  ton,  or  £900 
on  the  shipment. 


13 

From  the  New  York  Herald. 

DENVER,  COL.,  November  15,  1869. 

The  gold  and  silver  mines  of  Colorado  are  extensively  rich  in  the  pre- 
cious metals.  As  I  have  heretofore  remarked,  they  won  the  prize  at  the 
Paris  Exposition.  Accurate  assays  of  certain  specimens  show  that  they 
represent  an  intrinsic  value  of  from  under  $100  to  over  $10,000  to  the  ton, 
lying  blocked  in  the  recesses  of  the  mine. 

A  visit  to  the  gold  and  silver  mines,  and  an  examination  of  the  ores,  is 
sufficient  to  show  any  one  that  enormous  wealth  lies  buried  in  these  moun- 
tains. 

Georgetown  is  the  silver  center.  It  has  the  royal  soubriquet  of  Silver 
Queen.  It  is  situate  near  the  head  of  the  south  branch  of  Clear  Creek,  at 
the  base  of  the  snowy  range,  abont  fifty  miles  from  Denver.  Stages  run 
to  and  fro  daily,  except  Sunday. 

Georgetown,  already  large,  is  gradually  growing,  and  for  a  mining  town 
is  wonderful.  It  has  an  appearance  of  stability  eminently  Coloradian. 

Some  of  the  mines  are  very  near  the  town — on  the  hill  slopes  which  en- 
close it — and  others  are  from  one  mile  to  several  miles  away.  Some  of  the 
reduction  works  are  situate  at  the  mines  and  others  in  the  town,  while  in 
other  instances  the  ores  are  merely  hand- dressed,  put  into  bags  or  boxes 
and  sent  to  the  East  or  shipped  to  Europe  to  be  reduced. 

I  visited  most  of  the  principal  mines  and  mills  in  the  Georgetown  region. 
The  characteristic  mineral  of  the  locality  is  zinc  blende,  associated  with, 
galena  and  iron  pyrites.  Many  of  the  crystals  are  very  beautiful.  I  saw 
several  specimens  of  the  finest  ores  glittering  as  they  were  brought  out  of 
the  mine,  in  which  native  silver  was  quite  abundant. 

The  veins,  undoubtedly,  descend  deep  into  the  mountains,  and  are  true 
fissure  veins,  whose  yield  will  be  inexhaustible,  and  the  ores  are  richin  ruby, 
brittle  and  native  silver. 

The  foregoing  statement  of  facts  is  sufficient  to  show 
that  the  ore  deposits  owned  by  the  American  Company  are 
inexhaustible  in  quantity,  and  rich  enough  in  quality  to 
pay  immense  profits  upon  the  cost  of  working.  It  is  the 
expectation  of  the  Company  to  commence  paying  divi- 
dends upon  the  entire  capital  stock  as  soon  as  two  of  its 
ten  mines  are  opened  by  the  tunnels. 

A  small  portion  of  the  stock  of  the  Company  ($50,000) 
will  be  offered  for  sale  on  and  after  March  15,  at  low  rates. 
Further  information  can  be  obtained  of  A.  B.  MULLETT, 
Esq.,  Treasurer,  or  of  any  of  the  Trustees,  or  at  the  Com- 
pany's Office,  No.  324,  4J  street,  Washington.  The 
proceeds  of  this  amount  of  stock  are  appropriated  to 
working  the  mines.  This  stock  is  unassessable,  and  free 
from  all  taxes  (including  Government)  of  every  nature 
whatever. 


YLORD  BROS.  Inc. 
SyrocuM,  N.Y. 
Stockton,  Calif. 


